News And Media On The iPad: A Mixed Bad So Far

It's only been a matter of weeks, but the iPad era is off to a roaring start. Sales are amazing - a new iPad is sold every three seconds - and development has been brisk, especially for media content. iPad owners are mesmerized by the gadget, some even swearing they will never buy another laptop again.

"People laugh at me because I have used the phrase "magical" to describe the iPad," Steve Jobs said recently at the All Things D conference. "But it's what I really think. You have a much more direct and intimate relationship with the Internet and media, your apps, your content. It's like some intermediate thing has been removed and stripped away."

The question for local media, however, is whether the iPad (and similar devices that will start hitting the market soon) will dramatically change the game of audience and revenue. And, if so, how.